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6 Crimes Caught on CCTV – Presented by DCUK

At DCUK, we offer a wide range of CCTV services and installations for our clients in London and the surrounding areas.

For those of us that enjoy watching the occasional sci-fi film, the idea that criminals can often be apprehended, long after leaving the scene of the crime is nothing new. In the UK, although we do not utilise this cutting edge technology, there is said to be an estimated 420,000 CCTV cameras in London alone. This is second to Beijing which is said to have 470,000 cameras.

At first glance, with such a large number of cameras in operation, it may seem that we are constantly being watched. Many people may even wonder why we even need such a vast surveillance system in place.

CCTV is used as both a deterrent for those wishing to pursue any activities outside of the law. CCTV can be a huge deterrent for would-be burglars when given a choice of breaking into a house with or without a security system, one would logically assume that they would choose the latter. However, for those who still choose to take that chance, the police can also use the footage collected in order to later track these criminals and bring them to justice.

With all of these cameras running daily, there is a myriad of very strange and downright unbelievable footage. In this article, we will be listing our favourite criminal (and occasionally just odd) activity caught on CCTV.

If First, You Don’t Succeed…

One calamitous burglar made headlines with their incredibly unlucky attempt at breaking into a drug store in Oklahoma. Initially, the suspect decided to break into the store through the roof. After committing the crime, the criminal then decided to finish what they started by proceeding to leave the way that they came in.

For anyone using a ladder, there is always the danger that you could fall off if the ladder is not properly supported. On the first attempt to escape the scene of the crime, the footage shows the criminal rather clumsily falling off in an overly spectacular fashion. One can only imagine that the suspect was an avid collector of motivational posters, upon greeting the floor for the first time, they then proceeded to immediately get back on the “horse” and attempt their second escape. Reuniting with the cold, unforgiving floor of the drug store they then proceeded to rinse and repeat this process a further 5 times! On the 7th attempt, the criminal finally managed to climb into the ceiling tiles and escape the scene.

Ham, Pineapple, and Gravel Pizza

There has always been a debate as to whether some toppings belong on a pizza, most notably regarding pineapple. Forget politics, this is the one topic that is proven to divide a room instantly. However, there is one ingredient which is unanimously agreed to not belong on a pizza… gravel. This next act caught on CCTV may not necessarily be as extreme as some of the others on the list but it definitely demonstrates how CCTV can often help you get a much clearer picture.

One dishonest pizza delivery man arrived at their customer’s property before placing the meal onto their car. To the customer’s dismay, they managed to drop the entire contents of the pizza box onto the floor as if an external force had knocked it out of their hands. With no hesitation, he then proceeded to pick this off of the floor and very hastily deliver this to the customer. Whether the delivery driver was simply adhering to the “5-second rule” or not, you would be right in assuming that the customer was not very pleased to try this new pizza topping. Unfortunately, as there was no CCTV inside the property, we can only speculate as to whether the customer still tucked into their meal.

Learning From Your Experiences

The next crime caught on CCTV shows just how effective a security system can be at catching criminals who choose to enter your property. Even for those who do not monitor the activity at their own home, there may be opportunists instead who choose to monitor your activities. For those with a very consistent schedule, Burglars can time their break-in for the exact time that they know there will be no one in the house.

After being burgled once, one homeowner took this opportunity to install CCTV at their property to prevent this from happening in the future. Lo and behold, shortly after this the homeowner witnessed two male burglars entering her home yet again. Immediately she phoned the police and the burglars were both arrested. The victim even suspects that they may have been the same people that had previously broken into the house, coming to take whatever they had missed the first time.

The London Riots

The London riots in 2011 may now seem like a distant memory that may have even escaped your memory. During this time, thousands of people across London began rioting and looting whatever they could get their hands on. The riots resulted in five deaths, many injuries, and a significant amount of damage to many stores across the capital.

CCTV was a very effective tool during this time, it is estimated that around 4000 of the 5000 arrests made were thanks to the use of CCTV footage. Although many looters were seen to be covering their faces with hoods and balaclavas, thousands of these criminals had enough of their faces exposed, for them to be identified.

Thirsty Burglar

The previous actions caught on camera that has been discussed have been relatively tame compared to this next one. If there was a burglar’s handbook, it would definitely recommend not overstaying your welcome after breaking into a property. It would also probably recommend wearing nondescript clothing, while also concealing your face.

This burglar decided to really throw out the rule book on this one. CCTV footage showed one suspect going on a serial burgling spree in the nude! Not only did they leave no room for the imagination, but they also decided to relax and kick back with a beer or two after breaking into the properties. They even occasionally stopped to listen to some music and eat some food from the fridge. Unsurprisingly, this criminal was soon arrested, with CCTV footage exposing the various properties he had visited.

Grand Theft Livestock

Living in a city, you might not expect cattle rustling to be such a prevalent crime. When your livelihood relies on your ability to rear cattle, this can also be a truly distressing experience for a farmer. In Florida, one farmer had become the victim of multiple instances of grand theft livestock.

One day, the victim was alerted to the fact that around a dozen of his herd had been stolen. He alerted the police to this crime to discover that there had been many similar reports in the area. By using CCTV, the police were able to find footage of a truck jumping a red light, close to the scene. They were then able to track the perpetrators all the way to a local cattle market, noting the exact same brand used at the victims’ farm. They eventually managed to detain the criminals after cashing the cheque that they had just obtained from the cattle auction. Unfortunately for the farmer, the cattle had already been sold and slaughtered by the time the thieves were arrested.

Final Thoughts

And there you have it! 6 crimes caught on CCTV. We hope that after reading this article that you now appreciate how much CCTV can truly aid the police during their investigations, as well as the various lengths that criminals will go to.